Google told The INQUIRER that it does not have any policies that allow the selling or advertising of products obtained from endangered animals and acts to remove them as soon as it becomes aware of them.

"Ads for products obtained from endangered or threatened species are not allowed on Google," said a Google spokesperson. As soon as we detect ads that violate our advertising policies, we remove them."

The EIA said that it wrote to Google CEO Larry Page on 22 February and asked him to remove 1,400 ads that promote whale products and 10,000 ads that promote elephant ivory products on Google Japan's Shopping website. It said that the firm had not responded.

"Google has laudable policies that prohibit the promotion of endangered wildlife products including whale, dolphin and elephant ivory, but sadly these are not being enforced and that's devastating for whales and elephants," said EIA president Allan Thornton.

"While elephants are being mass slaughtered across Africa to produce ivory trinkets, it is shocking to discover that Google, with the massive resources it has at its disposal, is failing to enforce its own policies designed to help protect endangered elephants and whales."